I remember early on in our relationship my husband telling me that he did not want to be embalmed. I had never heard of a person not wanting either cremation or embalming. As you can see, I am an American. The industry has so convinced us that their funeral plans are the best and that they know what is traditionally American. Mortuary students learn about the “memory picture”. Embalmers are taught that families need a beautiful “memory picture” to help ease the grieving process. I shudder to think what we humans have been doing for thousands of years without commercial embalming. I can’t imagine that we were all running around stuck in complicated grief all because we did not have a “memory picture” of our loved ones embalmed after death. Grieving and memorialization takes place our societies, culture and religious or spiritual communities. How we are taught to view death shapes how we grieve. The memory picture of our loved one embalmed is the lynchpin to our grieving process. If you are one of the growing numbers of people who do not wish to be embalmed or cremated, there are options you can use to achieve a simple funeral and burial. The law does not require embalming unless you die from some very rare disease.

Washing and Essential Oils

While it is true that our bodies are not disgusting, we all do need a bath from time to time. This is true when we die. The body needs to be cleaned and patted dry. When we die our body starts to break down and skin is not as elastic. We need to be gentle with the body when we prepare a body in death. The body should also be anointed with essential oils. This not only has a pleasing scent, buthelps remove the bacteria from the body. For fuller details check out the Midwest Green Burial Society’s Home Funeraland Simple Burial Information Sheet.Our grandparents and great-grandparents knew how to care for the dead. We have lost so much common wisdom in this area.

Keep the Body Cool

Keeping the body cool slows the natural process of the body breaking down after death. If you are having a home funeral, you can use dry ice and make sure the room is cool. If you are using a funeral director, he or she can use refrigeration to achieve the same goal. One funeral director told me that you can keep a body refrigerated for ten days or more with out problems. Sometimes our families live far away and we might need to delay the funeral for that purpose.

Direct Burial

Direct Burial is usually done quickly with a small service at the grave. Usually the body is washed and prepared, but not embalmed. Some people might wish to have the burial over and done with and then a small memorial later. This works for some families. Some funeral homes like to use direct burial as their green burial option. While it is green and does suit some people, it is not the only option for people seeking an environmentally friendly or simple burial.

Totally Never want to be embalmed or Creamated Either!!!! I want flora and fauna to feast on me just as I have feasted on flaura and fauna my whole life.

Reply

Delicia Stephens

1/19/2017 08:18:51 pm

What a perfect idea....I love your outlook...I want to be cremated and spread to the four winds....

Reply

Dianne Dozier

9/22/2017 08:47:02 pm

I've always remembered my dad saying don't be embalmed, he said he worked at a mortuary when young,but to his death he never explained why and I'm only one of six kids so I lost on not having him not be embalmed sorry dad I tried. My reasoning is Godly reasons.

Leave a Reply.

Caroline Vuyadinov

I graduated from St. Vladamir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in Crestwood, New York with a Master of Divinity. I trained as a chaplain following graduation and worked with a wide variety of people.

When I moved to Canada, I began work in a women's halfway house in Hamilton, Ontario which worked with women in conflict with the law on a federal level. I became the program manager and loved working alongside the women, creating their plans for their reintegration back to the community. I also worked as a liaison with the parole board, parole officers and other community service providers.

Upon my return to the United States, I worked in the Death Care Industry as a Family Service Counselor, which lead me to become a green burial advocate. I co-founded Midwest Green Burial Society with Juliann Salinas. I speak to community groups and have developed practical seminars for a variety of audiences. I have been interviewed on a national podcast and was featured on a WGN spot dealing with green burial.